The Fight for Truth
by No one you should know
Summary: My life had always been a mess. But the truth always shows at some point, doesn't it? Well, it's time the truth about my life came out. Or should I rather say "Truths"?


**Disclaimer: I don't own How To Train Your Dragon**

_**(Takes place about a year after the second movie)**_

_My life had always been a bit of a mess. Actually, it was full of mess. I really had no idea... about pretty much anything in my life. It was about time I found out the truth. Or should I rather say "Truths"?_

* * *

Hiccup saw the Enemy Chief raise the sword. There was a screech as the blade tore through the material of Toothless' tail finn and the Dragon - Rider duo fell towards the ground. The impact of the soil took Hiccup's breath, though the fall was eased by Toothless landing first.

About a month ago the Gutspiller tribe, the Outcast Tribe, the Berserker Tribe and the Bloodthirster Tribe had united to fight against Berk under the leadership of Fager the Bloodthirsty. The attacks soon turned into a war, and many brave Vikings went to Valhalla.

Was this what dying felt like? Hiccup's body was numb and vibrated in pain, and colorful spots danced before the darkness of his eyes.

He had to get up. He had to. For Berk. For Toothless. And for Astrid, he had to get up.

Slowly he lifted himself off of the ground and opened his eyes.

Fager crashed into a nearby rock with a whole lot of force. Who in the world could create such strong force to smash a grown man, the largest of men Hiccup had seen, into a rock.

Fager picked himself up, and with a roar charged at his attacker. Snotlout also charged with a battle cry which would have made Stoic the Vast jealous.

There were no weapons involved, Hiccup noticed, it was only about pure muscle strength. It seemed like for every inch Fager wrestled Snotlout back, Snotlout got Fager back tree inches. Even in the heat of the fight, Hiccup couldn't help but notice the similarity of the two men. The fight looked like it was almost going to be Snotlout's victory, when Fager suddenly gave him an agonizing upper cut, making the Jorgenson grunt in pain and fly back against one of the rocks surrounding the scenario.

Out of seemingly nowhere, Fager was armed with a dagger and charging at the barely recovering young an he had just slammed into a rock. He was fast - damn fast - and before Snotlout or even Hiccup could recover, the former of the two had two bleeding gashes on his left cheek, trailing down to his jaw. Another movement, and Hiccup's cousin had a giant cut down his right shoulder blade.

Fager made another quick movement which Hiccup couldn't capture, but Snotlout had already grown accustomed to the attack pattern and rolled out of the way fast as lightning, in the process delivering a powerful punch into Fager's chest that sent the Bloodthirsty man flying.

Despite his injuries, the youngest - and only - Jorgenson threw himself on top of the enemy, pinning Fager to the ground by using all of his strength and weight.

The sound metal tearing through flesh echoed in Hiccup's ears as Fager gasped. With blood pouring out of his chest, the man gasped out words Hiccup could not understand. Fager's eyes rolled intothe back of his head and he stiffened.

Snotlout dragged himself off of the corpse, which had a dagger plunged deep into its chest, and collapsed on his back. An attacker viking saw the corpse, and with the terrified cry "Fager is dead! He killed Fager!" the message spread like fire through the petrified enemy.

Hiccup leaned over Snotlout, who's face was a bleeding mess mixed with sweat and raindrops (_When had it started to rain?_ Hiccup never notice it.).

"Go help Ruff and Tuff, I-I'll be fine..." was all it took to get Hiccup onto Toothless to retrieve the twins from the fleeing troops of the now dead Fager.

* * *

Snotlout lay in the muddy soil and his own blood from the gash he had received on the back, staring up at the grey skies, where the rain was falling in steady pearls.

He looked up at the sky, and waves of memories washed into his mind.

_"Dad! Dad?!" he cried as he quickly ran to the corpse. The flesh was pale and cold, and an arrow protruded from the chest of his father. His father was gone, and gone with his all the expectations and pressure. But the youngest Jorgenson didn't want them to go. They were part of his life. They were connected to all the punishments and harsh beatings from his father, just like the never heard words of praise, affection and all the other things only his Ma had ever said to him._

**_"I'm proud of you..."_**

Ma... he thought as he stared up to the grey sky.

_A tall and strong woman cradled her four year old son and stroke the tears out of his eyes. _

_"Hush sweetie. It's alright."_

_"M-Ma, don't - don't go a-away!" sobbed the little boy, when his mother ruffled his spiky hair. _

_"You look just like your father..." she muttered so quietly her son didn't hear her words. Then she sat him down in a corner of the house. _

_"Be brave, my little one. Stay strong. I will always be near you." And with these words the woman grabbed her mace and shield and ran out of the house. The last thing the terrified little boy saw was a red monstrous nightmare, flaming and roaring, leaning down towards his mother and devouring her in one gulp. _

For some reason, Snotlout had never before remembered his mother's death. The words she had spoken now made so much more sense. It seemed like ages ago that he had plunged that damn dagger into Fager's chest. It had all been a blur.

But what he could clearly remember was the gasp that left the man's mouth. it had sounded just like... _"Son..."_.

And he knew it was true. His father had always told him that he was the son of a bastard, that his mother had broken her vow, and that she was a _"gods forsaken damn whore"_, but he had never believed it. He still didn't believe it. His mother was the nicest of people in his oh-so-messed-up life, and whoever she loved, it had to be right.

His thoughts were interrupted by a worried yell addressing him.

* * *

Astrid leaned cautiously over the wounded viking, sorrow and emotion burning in her eyes.

"Snotlout? Oh Gods, 'Lout, what happened?!"

"I killed him, Astrid."

She smiled. Her smile was more that of a Valkyre than anything of Midgard, and for the split of a second Snotlout wondered if he was actually dead, but quickly disregarded of that thought when a stinging pain in his back made its way to his brain.

"That's a lot of blood." Again that haunting smile, with all the feelings behind it, causing the hint of an immature blush to form on Snotlout's cheeks.

After so many years...he still had a thing for her...

* * *

I don't know why I did it. It just came natural to me, for some reason.

I lavished in the tickling sensation of his kiss that I had never felt with Hiccup before. It was nothing like the warm kisses Hiccup gave me, it was rather a kiss that tasted sweet of withhold and passion.

* * *

Snotlout subconsciously leaned into Astrid's kiss for a moment, his passion fueled, when he brought up a rough yet so gentle hand to her cheek, guiding it away from him and breaking the kiss.

"Why -"

"Astrid. Hiccup loves you, and I can't just..."

"But I love **you**, Snotlout. Isn't this what you always wanted?"

"Yes. Yes I did, but Astrid -"

"Then why do you refuse?"

"Because I have made my decision, Astrid. I'm sorry." And with this he stroke her cheek telling her to stop, stop for the gods' sake, because if she continued, he would loose all of the willpower not to come back at her.

* * *

Hiccup, with the twins and Fishlegs following his in the distance, landed, and got off of Toothless, beginning to walk into the direction where he left Snotlout. He hadn't been able to find Astrid.

"Then why do you refuse?" Astrid! That was Astrid's voice! She was save!

"Because I have made my decision, Astrid. I'm sorry." And she was with Snotlout. His cousin was alive. Though he didn't sound too good at all. His voice was quiet and a little bit broken.

Hiccup walked towards the spot where he had left his cousin, failing to notice the emotion that was held in the voices of the two.

Astrid was worridly kneeling next to Snotlout, they were looking each other in the eyes, and only Hiccup missed the flames of desire those two pairs of eyes burned with.

"Astrid!" he called out happily.

Snotlout coughed and tried to stand up.

Astrid hurriedly and with a caring look helped him on one knee, while Snotlout grabbed his preferred weapon, his mace.

In front of Hiccup, Snotlout then put his hands on his mace and stood on one knee.

"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, chief of the Hairy Hooligans. Hereby I, Snotlout Haggard Jorgenson, last of the Jorgenson Clan, pledge on my honor as a warrior to protect you and Berk with all my heart and strength. I am aware that this takes away my right of marriage, and that in the case of betrayal you have the obligation to ban me from the Hairy Hooligan tribe or end my life. I swear on my beating heart to stay loyal and devote myself to the art warfare."

Hiccup, Astrid, Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Fishlegs looked equally baffled, yet Hiccup raised his hand above his cousin's head.

"I, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, Chief of the Hairy Hooligan tribe, accept your pledge. You know the consequences and are aware of what you are doing, therefore you have my blessing and trust. You may rise."

And Snotlout rose, despite wincing a bit at his injuries, and bowed before his chief.

"Now, let's get you patched up", Hiccup pronounced smiling, ruining the proud atmosphere. Only then did they notice that all of Berk's Vikings had gathered around them.

"How do you even memorize that stuff?" Ruffnut asked Snotlout, still not quite believing that he had recited all of that out of his head.

"Dad made me memorize both, the part of the warrior and the part of the chief when I was little." he said, smiling.

Seeing the warrior had problems standing, Astrid put his arm around her shoulder and supported the young man, who was quite pale of blood loss already, to walk to Stormfly. The trained eye might have caught the softness of her movements and the affection in her eyes, though she hid both well.

* * *

Astrid had her arms around the Viking as she and Stormfly took off to Gothi's house.

And she realized he was right. She couldn't do this to Hiccup. Not the man she had loved.

"Snotlout," she whispered into his hair, "You were right, but I will always love you."

* * *

Snotlout grew well respected around the village, and no one ever doubted his loyalty towards Hiccup.

No one ever mentioned Astrid's kiss, though even after Hiccup and Astrid got married, she would look at him quite differently than she did at everyone else.

_Yeah, you could say my life was and still is quite in chaos, but beautiful chaos nonetheless, and I wouldn't want to miss one second of it._


End file.
